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United States Patent | 5,528,059 |
Isogai | June 18, 1996 |
An amplification-type photoelectric conversion device utilizes a JFET and is capable of amplifying charges generated by photoelectric conversion with a high amplification factor and improves the S/N ratio. The device is provided with a drive circuit for respectively applying driving signals to a source region, a drain region and a gate electrode of the JFET. The drive circuit has a first signal mode for accumulating charges generated by incident light on the JFET, and a second signal mode for causing the flow of current between the source and the drain and raising a potential difference between the source and the drain to a high level thereby causing an impact-ionization effect corresponding to an amount of the charges accumulated by the first mode to accumulate the resulting charges. A signal output corresponding to a total amount of the charges accumulated by the first and second modes is delivered from the drain.
Inventors: | Isogai; Tadao (Yokohama, JP) |
Assignee: | Nikon Corporation (Tokyo, JP) |
Appl. No.: | 351158 |
Filed: | November 30, 1994 |
Dec 01, 1993[JP] | 5-301666 |
Current U.S. Class: | 257/187; 257/257; 257/258; 257/291; 257/462; 257/E31.079; 307/117; 307/412 |
Intern'l Class: | H01L 029/80; H01L 031/112 |
Field of Search: | 257/186,187,257,258,291,290,462,438 307/117,412 |
5043783 | Aug., 1991 | Matsumoto et al. | 257/257. |
5155574 | Oct., 1992 | Yamaguchi | 257/257. |
5298778 | Mar., 1994 | Yonemond | 257/257. |
Foreign Patent Documents | |||
6021504 | Jan., 1994 | JP | 257/462. |